Elevator control system



June 21, 1960 J. WJKEPPLER ETAL 2,941,624

ELEVATOR CONTROL SYSTEM Filed May 6, 1959 United States Patent ELEVATORCONTROL SYSTEM Jack W. Keppler, Seattle, Wash., and Henry J, Holuba,

Moline, Ill., assignors to Montgomery Elevator Company, a corporation ofDelaware Filed May 6, 1959, Ser. No. 811,437

9 Claims. (Cl. IS7-29) This invention relates to an elevator controlsystem and is concerned more particularly with an apparatus in amulti-car elevator control system for expediting service and improvingthe eiliciency of the system.

In automatic or operatorless elevator systems controls for the cars areprovided which respond to car and hall calls registered by actual orprospective passengers causing the cars to travel to the appropriatefloors. It sometimes happens that a hall call will be registered by a,

prospective passenger at a iloor to which one of the cars of theinstallation is travelling in response t a car call registered by apassenger. With the usual control system the hall call sets up circuitsdirecting each of the cars to go to the floor from which the call wasregistered, and the first car to arrive stops. Unless the car with thecarcall for that loor happens to be the first one to arrive, two carswill stop at the iloor in close succession. This results in ineicientutilization of the elevator system.

A principal object of the present invention is the provision of a systemin which a car conditioned to stop .at a tloor in answer to a car callalso serves to answer ;a hall call at that oor and other cars are notaffected by the hall call.

One feature of the invention is the provision in an elevator controlsystem of means at the iloors for registering a hall call for service bya prospective passenger, rst control means responsive to a hall call forconditioning the cars to answer the hall call, means for registering carcalls, second control means for conditioning cars to answer car calls,and a third control means responsive to a car call for service to ailoor rendering the second control means inoperative to conditionAanother car to answer a hall call from that oor.

A further feature is that direction preference control means areprovided for each car and interconnected with the third control means sothat the second control means is rendered inoperative only when the carwith a car call is conditioned to travel in the direction of traveldesired by the prospective passenger who registers the hall call.

Further features and advantages will readily be apparent from thefollowing specication and from the drawings, in which:

Figure l is a diagrammatic perspective of an elevator car at a iloor;and

Figure 2, comprising portions 2A and 2B, is a simpliiied control circuitdiagram for an elevator control system embodying the invention.

In the drawings and in the following discussion, certain components ofthe elevator system as the hoisting mechanism, the guide and levelingmechanism in the shaft, the door operators, dispatching system, theassociated electrical control circuitry for these mechanisms and thelike, which form a part of a complete automatic elevator system and maybe of any known or suitable design, are not illustrated in order toavoid complication of the drawings and description. Furthermore, whilethe invention relates to a control system for an installation having aplurality of elevator cars, only one car ICC is shown in Figure 1, andfor the most part, only the circuitry associated with one car isillustrated in Figure 2. Where elements are duplicated for additionalcars, this will be pointed out.

In Figure 1, an elevator car 10 is shown at a oor or landing 11. Ahoisting cable 12 attached to the top of the car is connected withsuitable machinery to raise or lower the car to each of a plurality offloors. A plurality of floor selector push-buttons 14 are provided on apanel 15 in the car 10 by means of which the passengers in the car mayselect or register the floor to which they Wish to go. A pair ofpush-buttons 16 and 17 are mounted in hall 11 adjacent the shaft of theelevator and may be used by prospective passengers to register a callfor service in either the up or down direction. In a typicalinstallation there are two or more elevator cars, each provided with itsown set of car push-buttons, and hall call buttons at each floor theelevators service. Of course, at the highest floor there is only a Downbutton and at the lowest floor only an Up button.

Turning now to Figure 2, Figure 2A illustrates a simplified form of theessential elements of an elevator system embodying the invention, in anacross the line diagram. Figure 2B is a key for the relays and contactsof Figure 2A.

The control circuit is energized by connecting leads 20 and 21 to asuitable source of power, as 1l() volts A.C. Typical hall call buttoncircuits are illustrated for the highest and the lowest floors, heredesignated 10 and 1, respectively, and at the intermediate iioor,designated S. Down hall button 10D, when operated registers a call fordown service from the 10th floor by completing a circuit for a masterhall relay M10D. Contact M10D1 completes a holding circuit for relayM10'D so that it remains energized after hall button 10D is released. Anindicator lamp L10D is connnected in par allel with M10D and lightsindicating visually to those in the hall that a call has been registeredfor Down service from the 10th floor. Similar circuits are provided forrelays MSU, M8D and MIU and their associated lamps.

Each of the master hall relays as MSD has a set of 4contacts in thecircuit of individual hall relays for each of the cars, as SDH. Althoughonly one of each of the individual hall relays is shown, it will beunderstood that the system has one individual hall relay for each car,in the installation. For example, in a three car installation, therewill be a relay SDH for each car, and their circuits Will be completedthrough duplicate contacts associated with the master hall relays.Connected in series with the master hall relay contacts in theindividual hall relay circuits are normally closed contacts designatedMDS, SUS, SDS and IUS which are associated with screening relays thatwill be described incall relays as 16C, 3C and 1C. In the case of therelaysv 10C, three identical circuits are shown including relays 10C-A,10G-B and 10C-C, representing the relays associated with the three carsof a three car installation. It

will be understood that an actual system has a car call relay for eachcar and for each ioor. The contacts asf sociated with the car callrelays activate control circuitry (not shown in detail) which conditionsthe individual cars to travel to and stop at the selected oors.

Included as a part of the control circuitry of the system are directionpreference relays UPR and DPR, there being one associatedwith thecircuitryl for. each car. The manner in which these relays are activatedandl deactivated is not essential to an understanding of the presentinvention and their circuits are shown in the drawing merely ascompleted through switches 25 and 26 which are actuated by movement ofthe associated car so that the car is conditioned to travel in theproper direction. For example, a car at the highest lloor is conditionedto travel down (relay DPR is energized) and a car at the lowest floor isconditioned to travel up (relay UPR is energized).

The screening relays, referred to above, are designated 1DS,-8US, SDSandl IUS, corresponding with 10th oor Down, 8th floor Up, 8th floor Downand lst floor Up respectively. Of course, similar screening relays areprovided for the other intermediate floors. The circuits of screeningrelays lllDS and IUS are simpler than that of intermediate floorscreening relays and will be discussed first. Screening relay 10DS isenergized through any one of three parallel circuits, the rst includingseries connected contacts MEC-A1 and UPRA, the car call and Uppreference relays for car A, the second including contacts 16C-B andUPR-B are associated with car B and the third circuit includes contacts16C-C and UPR-C, associated with car C. The three energizing circuitsfor screening relay lUS are generally the same, and including contactsassociated with the three car call relays 1CA, lC-B and lC-C andcontacts DPR-A, DPR-B and DPR C of the down preference relays of cars A,B and C. In the circuitry for energizing screening relays SUS and SDS,some consolidation of contacts is elected. For example, car call relaySC-A, which is energized when a call for the 8th floor is registered incar A, is connected in series with two parallel circuits one includingcontact UPR-A, associated with the Up preference relay of car A, andscreening relay SUS; and the other circuit including-Down preferencerelay contact DPR-A and screening relay SDS. Thus when a call for the8th floor is registered in car A, contact C-A closes and a circuit iscompleted through one of UPR-A or DPR-A depending upon which directionthe car is traveling, energizing screening relay SUS or SDS. Identicalcircuits are provided for cars B and C.

A hall call for Down service from the 8th oor, for example, isregistered by closing push-button switch SD, energizing master downrelay MSD in turn completing a holding circuit for the relay throughMSD@ and also energizing indicator lamp LSD. Contact MSD@ closescornpleting a circuit through normally closed Contact SDS closing the`individua-.l hall relays SDH for each car. If a car call has beenregistered from anyone of the three cars A, B and C, for a stop at the8th floor by a car moving in a downward direction, a circuit iscompleted energizing relay SDS. For example, such a circuit might becornpleted through contacts SC-A and DPR-A. Screening relay SDS opensContact SDS in the circuit of individual hall relay SDH. With the relaySDH unenergized, only the car responding to the car call, i.e. car A,stops at the 8th iloor. `Thus, it is not necessary to detain one of theother Vcars which might pass the 8th iloor travelling in a downdirection before car A arrives.

At all times the indicator at the floor, as LMD, remains energizedwhether the call is being answered by a car also answering a car call orthrough the circuits of the individual hall relays, as NDH.

If a car call `for lthe 8th floor is registered from a car travelling inthe Up rather than the Down direction, contact UPRA closes energizingscreening relay SUS and the circuit of hall call relay SDH isunaffected.

The car call relays are each provided with a holding circuit, althoughonly the circuit for relay 10C-A (corresponding with a call 'for serviceto the 10th tloor from a passenger in ca'r A) is shown in the drawing.The holdare to be understood therefrom, as some modifications will beobvious to those skilled in the art.

We claim:

l. in a control system for a multi-car elevator installation, the carsserving a plurality of floors, apparatus corn prising: means at thelloors for registering a hall call for service by a prospectivepassenger; lirst control means responsive to a hall. call forconditioning a car to answer the hall call; means in each car forregistering a car call for service to said oors; second control meansresponsive to a car call for conditioning the car to answer the carcall; and third control means responsive to a car call for service to aoor rendering the .first control means inoperative to condition a cartoanswer a call Ifrom such oor.

2. In a control system for a multi-car elevator installation, the carsserving a plurality of floors, apparatus cornprising: means at thefloors'for registering a hall call for service in a desired direction bya prospective passenger; rst control means responsive to a hall call forconditioning a car to answer the hall callg-means in each car forregistering a car call for service to said floors; second control meansresponsive to a car call for conditioning the car to answer the carcall; direction preference control means for each car; and third controlmeans responsive to a car call for service to a lloor and to saiddirection pref- `erence control means, rendering the first control meansinoperative to condition a car to answer` said hall call.

3. In a control system for a multi-car elevator installal tion, the carsserving a plurality of floors, apparatus comprising: means at the floorsfor registering a hall call for service by a prospective passenger;first control means responsive to a hall call for conditioning a oar toanswer the hall call; means in each car for registering a car call forservice to said floors; second control means re sponsive to a car callfor conditioning the car to answer the car call; third control meansresponsive to a car call for service to a iloor rendering the firstcontrol means` inoperative to condition a car to answer a call from suchfloor; means for cancelling a car call; and holding meansl associatedwith said'hall call registering means for actuating said rst controlmeans.

4. In a control system for a multi-car elevator installation, the carsserving a plurality of floors, apparatus comprising: ymeans at thefloors for registering a hall call for i service by a prospectivepassenger; lirst control means responsive to a hall call for actuatingindividual car directing circuits conditioning all cars to answer saidhall call; means in each car yfor registering a car call for service tosaid floors; second control means responsive to a car call forconditioning the car to answer the car actuating individual cardirecting circuits conditioning all cars to answer said hall call; meansin each car for registering a car call for service to said oors; secondcontrol means responsive Vto a car call for conditioning the car toanswer the car call; direction preference control means for each car;and third control means responsive to a car call for service to a floorand to said direction preference control means breaking each of saidindividual car directing circuits, rendering the first control meansinoperative to condition the car to answer a hall call from such oor.

6. In a control system for a multi-car elevator installation, the carsserving a plurality of floors, apparatus comprising: means at the oorsfor registering a hall call for service by a prospective passenger;iirst control means responsive to a hall call for conditioning a car toanswer a hall call; means in each car for registering a car call forservice to said iioors; second control means responsive to a car callfor conditioning the car to answer the car call; and screening relaysresponsive to car calls for service to a oor and having contactsassociated therewith in the circuit of said rst control means, renderingthe first control means inoperative to condition a car to answer a hallcall from such oor.

7. In a control system for 4a multi-car elevator installation, the carsserving a plurality of floors, apparatus comprising: means at the floorsfor registering a hall call for service in a desired direction by aprospective passenger; first control means responsive to a hall call forconditioning a car to answer the hall call; means in each car forregistering a car call for service to said oors; second control meansresponsive to a car call for conditioning the car to answer the carcall; direction perference control means for each car; and screeningrelay means for each floor including interconnected switch contact meansassociated with said car call registering means and said directionpreference control means, said screening relay means having switchcontacts in the circuit of said iirst control means, rendering the rstcontrol means inoperative to condition the car to answer a hall callwhich can be answered by a car answering a car call.

8. In a control system for a multi-car elevator installation, the carsserving a plurality of tloors, apparatus comprising: means at the oorsfor registering a hall call for service in a desired direction by aprospective passenger; first control means responsive to a hall call foractuating individual car directing circuits conditioning all cars toanswer said hall call; means in each car for registering a car call forservice to said floors; second control means responsive to a car callfor conditioning the car to answer the car call; direction preferencecontrol means for each car and screening relay means includinginterconnected switch contact means associated with said car callregistering means and said direction preference control means, saidscreening relay means having switch contacts associated therewith in thecircuit of said rst control means, rendering the rst control meansinoperative to condition a oar to answer a hall call from a floor towhich a car is traveling in response to a car call and conditioned fortravel in the direction desired by the prospective passenger.

9. The elevator control system of claim 3, wherein registered hall callindicating means are provided at each oor, actuated through said holdingmeans.

No references cited.

